Gas-producing apparatus and method



March 1, 1949. R. H. GODDARD 2,463,098

- GAS PRODUCING APPARATUS AND METHOD Filed Feb. 9, 1942 a Sheets-:Sheet 1 Fem/re 707/1 G'asab're 2&4.

V9POR/ZER March 1, 1949. R. H. GODDARD GAS PRODUCING APPARATUS AND METHOD 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 9, 1942 mas/-09."

March 1, 1949. R. H. GODDARD 2,463,098

GAS PRODUCING APPARATUS AND METHOD Filed Feb. 9, 1942 5 Sheets-Sheet I5.

VHPOfi/ZEI? \ll 31 0 D DEVI/9.75827 Evie/(2. 6 0%??? eajf w out in the appended claims.

' the upper portion of a gas Patented Mar. 1, 1949- GAS-PRODiICING APPARATUS AND METHOD Robert H. Goddard, Roswell, N. Mex., assignor of one-half to The Daniel and Florence Guggen- 1 heim Found: tion, tion of New York New York, N. Y., a corpora-v Application February 9, 1942, Serial No. 430,116

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to the production of an oxidizing gas by the evaporation of a liquid, and

particularly to production of gas from a very cold liquid, such as liquid oxygen. This invention has special utility and importance in connection with the operation of internal combustion engines at very high altitudes, as inaircraft or rocket craft, the oxidizing gas being used to'replace the greatly rarefied surrounding atmosphere, in whole or in part.

It is the general object of my invention to provide improved apparatus by which an oxidiz ing'gas may be rapidly produced by evaporation of an oxidizing liquid, preferably in a generator in which limited combustion is sustained to accelerate evaporation.

I also provide improved devices for controlling the delivery of such an oxidizing gas to a carburetor or similar apparatus, and for varying'the proportion of oxidizing gas and atmospheric airdelivered to said carburetor.

Another feature of the invention relates to the provision of means for modifying or diluting the oxidizing gas before it is delivered to the carburetor. This may preferably be accomplished by the introduction of a limited amount of an inert gas, such as nitrogen, which inert gas may also be produced by evaporation.

My invention further relates to arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed Preferred forms of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a side elevation, partly in section, of my improved gas producing apparatus, with certain associated mechanism and electrical circuits shown more or less diagrammatically;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail sectional elevation of a portion of a jacketed pipe structure;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional elevation of generator and certain associated parts;

.Fig, 4 is a partial transverse section of the gas generator, taken along the line 4-4 in Fig.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a thermostatic circuit-closing device shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged side elevation, partly in section, showing certain operative connections to the oxygen storage tank;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged side elevation, partly in section, showing the lower end of the gas generator, together with certain control valves and connections Fig. 8 is a detail plan vie w, looking in the direction of the arrow 8 in Fig. 7; and

Fig; 9 is a side elevation of a solenoid-operated circuit-closing device to be described.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1, I have shown my gas producing apparatus as connected to supply an artificial oxidizing gas, such as oxygen, to the carburetor C of an internal combustion engine having a gas manifold l0 and apluraliiy of cylinders H. The. engine and carburetor are illustrative only, as my improved apparatus may be used to produce gas for many different purposes.

As shown in Fig. 1,,my improved gas producing apparatus comprises a gasoline tank G, an oxygen tank 0, a nitrogen tank N, and a pressure tank P. The pressure tank P is connected to the gasoline tank through a reducing valve M, and is similarly connected through a reducing valve l5 and pipe It to the oxygen tank 0, the connection being made through the sleeve I6 The lower end of an oxygen discharge pipe 20 provides a support for the nitrogen tank N and has an oiiset branch 2! extending around and below the tank N and open at its lower end. A baflle ring 20 on the pipe v20 prevents the pressure gas entering through the sleeve I6 from agitating the liquid oxygen in the oxygen tank 0.

, bottom of the tank N, with the lower end of the pipe open. A branch pipe 32 (Fig. 1) is provided for filling the tank N and this pipe is provided with a shut-off valve 33. The lower end of the vaporizer 25 is connected by a discharge pipe 35 to the upper branch of a gas connection 36 for the carburetor C. A corresponding lower branch 31 provides for the admission of atmospheric air. The pipes 35 and 31 are provided with butterfly valves 38 and 39, the special operating apparatus for which will be hereinafter described.

The details of construction of my improved gas producing apparatus may be more readily understood if the general purpose and method of operation is first described.

The general intent is to provide an oxidizing gas, such as oxygen more or less modified by an inert gas, to replace the rarified atmosphere found at very high altitudes. pose, liquid oxygen from the tank is forced into the generator by gas pressure provided from the pressure tank P through the regulating valve To accomplish this pur- I5. Gasoline in limited amount issimilarly forced into the generator 25 from the gasoline tank G, and ignition is provided by a, spark-plug. Combustion of a comparatively small amount of gasoline provides sumcient heat to vaporizea relative- Y ly large amount of liquid oxygen.

The resultant oxygen gas then passes through the discharge pipe to the carburetor C, provided the valve 38 is not closed. The oxygen gas may be modified to reduce its detonating effect by admitting a controlled small amount of nitrogen to the generator 25. v

The relative setting of the valves 38 and 39 is controlled manually, and the proportions of atmospheric air and oxidizing gas may thus be varied as desired'and as conditions indicate. The valves 38 and 39 operate reversely, so that as one valve is moved toward closed position, the other valve receives an'opening movement. proper movementand relative adjustment of the control valves 38 and 39, the carburetor C may be provided with a suitable oxidizing gas under any atmospheric condition.

Having made this brief statement of general at the lower end of the discharge pipe jacket and adjacent the vent 52. This device comprises a bimetallic curved band 53 (Figs. 3 and 5), one end of which is fixed to the pipe 20 and the other end of which is free to move toward or away from the pipe 28 in response to temperature changes.

A contact element 54 (Fig. 5) is'supported by a non-conducting rod 54 mounted on the band 53, and the element 54 is positioned in a small contact chamber 55 fixed at the lower end of the jacket 58. Whenthe bi-metallic band 53 contracts, the element 54 connects an inner pair of contacts 56 and 51. When the band 53 expands, the element 54 connects, an outer pair of contacts 58 and 59. These contacts control electrical circuits to be described, by which the solenoid operated valve V is actuated to shut off the supply of liquid oxygen from the jacket 50 as soon as the lower or operation, I will now describe the details of con- 1 struction of the several parts of my apparatus.

The pressure tank P and the gasoline tank G may be of any usual construction, the tank P having a filler pipe 42 and shut-off valve 43 and the tank G having. a filler plug 44.

The oxygen tank 0 is provided with an outer casing or jacket 45 to reduce evaporation, and the space between the tank and the jacket may be filled with a suitable heat-insulating material or the outer surface of thetank O.

The jacket 45 has an upward extension at 41 which supports a filler pipe 41 connected into the discharge pipe 28. The pipe 41 is provided with k a filler plug 48 and with a safety valve 48 which prevents any undue rise in pressure in the oxygen tank. V

The oxygen discharge pipe. 20 is also jacketed as indicated at 58 (Figs. 1 and 2) and is provided with a series of perforated discs or baffles 5| (Fig. 2) which are mounted on the discharge pipe 20 and within the outer casing or jacket 58. These baiiles 5| extend'close to, but do not touch, the outer casing 50. The baiiles thus cool the inner tube 28 effectively, and at the same time do not lead heat inward from the outer casing.

Liquid oxygen is admitted to the jacket space by a solenoid-operated valve V (Figs. 1 and 6), the construction, and operation of which will be hereinafter described. a

The jacket 58 (Fig. 3) extends downward to a point adjacent the connection of the pipe 20 to the v'aporizer25 and is provided with a vent or opening 52 at its lower end. The discs or bailles 5| in the jacket 58 retard the down new of liquid oxygen, so that only oxygen gas can reach the vented end of the jacket is sufiiciently cooled.

The vaporizer 25 is shown as having a cylindrical side wall 60 a conical head 6i and a conical bottom portion 62. The solenoid-operated gasoline feed valve V is mounted above the conical head BI and when the valve V is opened, gasoline is projected through an inlet opening 83 in the form of a. spray. The head 6| is provided with a protective copper lining 64 of substantial thickness. Curved vanes 65 in the gasoline intake give a whirling motion to the gasoline as it approaches the inlet 63 and thus produce a more eflective'spray.

:The plug 65 (Fig. 3) of the valve V is connected by a rod6'lto'a plunger 68 slidable in a solenoid 69. A bellows packing I0 surrounds the rod 6'! and prevents leakage. A spring ll normally closes the valve V, when the solenoid 69 is not excited.

The head H has an offset tube I2 in which a cylindrical spark-plug support I3 is slidable. The inner end of the support 13 engages a shoulder in the tube 12 and the support .is normally held against the shoulder by a coil spring 14, the outer end of which abuts a cap 15 on the end of the tube vl2.

The spark-plug 11 is firmly mounted in the support 13 and is slidable therewith. The usual spark rod 18 extends through the porcelain sleeve of the spark-plug, and the spark is formed between the inner end of the rod I 8 and a grounded projection 19 on the copper lining 64.

A contact arm is mounted on a, bracket 8| supported by the cap 15 and this arm 88 is normally engaged by a contact pin 82 on an arm 83 mounted on the porcelain sleeve of the sparkplug 71. ,The circuits to the spark rod I8, the arm 80 and the contactpin 82 will be hereinafter described. For the present it is suflicient to state that Whenthe pressure rises in the generator 25, the spark-plug support'l3 is moved outward and the contact between the arm 80 andthe pin 82 is thus broken, This also withdraws the plug from extreme heat.

Liquid oxygen from the discharge pipe 20 enters the cylindrical side wall 68 of the generator 25 through a reduced inlet 85 (Fig. 4) controlled by the plug 86 of a solenoid-operated valve V (Fig. 3). v

The solenoid-operated valve V is of the same construction as the valve. V previously described and is operatedby a solenoid 88. .The inlet 85 is tangentially arranged, so that the liquid oxygen enters tangentially and forms a circumferential film on the inside of the vaporizer wall 60.

As, the oxygen begins to evaporate, a small amount of oxygen vapor rises and mingles with nected to wires I20 and I2I.

the gasoline spray and the mixture thus formed is ignited by the spark-plug I1. This produces a sufllcient amount of hot combustion gases to evaporate a relatively large amount of liquid oxyavailable for breathing at high altitude in an enclosed aircraft cabin.

It is usually found desirable to additionally dilute the oxidizing gas for carbureting purposes, as otherwise a detonating. mixture may be formed. For this purpose I connect the nitrogen feed pipe (Fig. 7) to a nozzle member 30 supported within the vaporizer 26 and near the conical lower end portion 62 thereof.

The flow of nitrogen through the pipe 3i. valve V and pipe 30 to the nozzle 00 is controlled by a shut-off valve 32 having an operating rod 03 :by which it may be manually controlled. By opening or closing the valve 62, any desired amount of liquid nitrogen may be released through the nozzle device 90, thus providing a manually shifting the switch to close either of the branch connections I22 or I23.

A wire I25 cbnnects the battery wire I2I to the contact member III! which is movable with the valves 38j'and 39. The segmental contact plate H2 is connected through wires I26 and I21 to one side ofgeach of the solenoids 35, 86 and 63 which control the valves V. V and V respectively. The other sides of these solenoids are connected to thebattery through branch wires I30 and I3I anda return wire I32. When the contact member IIO engages the segmental plate.

H2, these solenoid circuits are closed and the valves V, V' and V are simultaneously opened.

corresponding amount of nitrogen gas to dilute the oxidizing gas as it passes downward to the discharge pipe 35. The valve V is of the same construction as the valves V and W shown in Fig. 3 and is similarly controlled by a solenoid 06.

The butterfly valves 38 and (Fig. '1) in the branch pipes and 37 are provided with operating armsI00 and WI. .The arm IOI is pivotally connected to a rod I02 by which. the position of the arm IOI may be manually controlled to open or close the atmospheric valve 36.

The arm I00 is connected to the arm IOI and rod I02 through an adjustable link L comprising a threaded rod I03, a nut' I00 and a support I05 on which the nut is rotatably mounted. If the nut I00 is rotated, the eii'ective length of the link obviously L connecting the arms I00 and IM will be changed.

A small motor M (Figs. '7 and 8) is mounted on a bracket I 06 on the side of the support I05 and is provided with a worm III'I engaging a worm wheel I08 rotatable with the nut I04. The motor M is'reversible and when rotated in either direction will correspondingly rotate the worm wheel I00 and nut I 04 and thus increase or decrease the length of the link L which connects the arms I00 and NI.

By changing the effective length of the link L, the relative position of the oxygen valve 38 for any position of the atmospheric valve 30 may be determined. The valves open reversely, so that I opening movement of either is accompanied by a are shown diagrammatically in Fig. 1. A battery B or other suitable source of electricity is con- The wire I20 is connected to the reversing motor M through branch wires I22 and I23 and a reversing switch I24. The wire I2I is also connected to the motor M as a return wire. The switch I24 is normally open but the motor may be operated in either direction to vary. the length of the link L by The battery wire I20 is additionally connected through a wire I34 to one side of each of two solenoid coils I35 and I36 (Figs. 1 and 9). Return wires I 31 and I30 from these coilsare connected to the previously described contacts 59 and 51 (Fig. 3) respectively, which contacts are engageable by the movable contact .element 54 which is thermostatically controlled. These solenoid circuits are selectively completed through the contacts 56 and 56, which contacts are connected by a common return wire I40 to the wire- I2'I previously described.

A plunger I02 (Figs; 1 and 9) is slidable in the coils I35 and I36 and supports an insulated contact member I03 which is positioned to engage an insulated contact plate I44 when the plunger I02 is moved to the left as viewed in Fig.9. 1

The member I43 is connected by a wire I45 (Fig. 1) to one terminal of a reversing switch I06. The other terminal is connected by a wire I01 to the battery wire "I. The contact plate I40 is connected by a wire I08 to the wire I21 and the reversing member of the switch I46 is connected by a vwire I50 (Fig. 1) to one side of a solenoid I5I (Fig. 6) which operates the valve V which controls the admission of oxygen to the discharge jacket 50. The other side of the solenoid I5I is connected by a wire I52 to the battery B.

The primary of the spark-coil I (Fig. 1) is connected by a wire IOI to the return wire I32 and by a wire I62to the contact pin 82 (Fig. 3) which is movable with the spark-plug TI. The associated contact plate 80 is connected by a wire I63 to the wire I21 which is energized by engagement of the contact member 0 with the segmental plate H2.

The sparkrod I8 (Fig. 3) in the spark-plug I1 is connected by a wire I65 (Fig. 1) to one side of the secondary in the spark-coil I60, and theother side of the secondary is grounded through a wire I66 connected to thegenerator head 6|.

Having described the details of construction of my improved gas producingapparatus, the method of operation and advantages thereof are as follows:

reducing valves I4 and I5 on the gasoline in.

the tank G and on the oxygen in the tank 0.

The valves 38 and 39 which control admission of atmospheric air or oxidizing gas to the carburetor C are shown in Fig. 1 in normal position for operation with atmospheric air, the valve 38- being closed and the valve 39 being open. it now is desired to supplyan oxidizing gas to amaoea replace the atmospheric air in whole or in part,

the rod I02 is pulled downward manually and such'movement will partially close the atmospheric valve 33 and correspondingly open the valve 33. v Such movement will at the same time close a control circuit through the member H and plate II2.

'When this control circuit is closed, the gasoline" valve V,-the oxygen valve V and the nitrogen valve V will be simultaneously opened to admit gasoline, oxygen and nitrogen respectively to the vaporizer 2i. At'the same time, a' circuit is closed through the primary of the spark coil I80, thus energizing the. secondary and providing a. spark to ignite the inixtur'e'of gasoline vapor and oxygen gas which will now-form in the -up-'-' per part of the vaporizer.

tion of the apparatus is substantially automatic advantages ther of, I do not wish to be limited to the details herei disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claims, but what I claim is;

1; In a gas producing apparatus, a vaporizer, said vaporizer having an inlet means for supplying a fluid thereto, having a'second inlet means As the pressure rises in the vaporizer 25, the

spark-plug support 13 will be pushed back against the pressure or the spring 14 and the contact pin 32 willbe separated from the contact arm 30, thus breaking the ignition circuit which isv no longer-necessary after combustion has been well established.

At the beginning of operations, the discharge pipe and the lower part of the jacket 50 will be substantially at' atmospheric temperature, with the thermostatic band 53 contracted and the contact element 54 connecting the terminals.

or contact points 56 and '51. A circuit is thus completed through the left-hand solenoid I36, drawing the plunger 42 to the left and connecting the contact elements I43 and I44. Felt friction sleeves I42 in the solenoids I35 and I36 cause the plunger to'maintain any position to which it is shifted until it is positively moved 7 therefrom.

Closing of the circuit between the contact I43 and I44 energizes the solenoid ISI for the valve V (Fi 6) and causes oxygen to be admitted to the space between the discharge pipe and the jacket 50. When the lower end of the jacket 50 is sufllciently cooled, expansion of the band 53 will connect the contacts 58 and 59, energizing the solenoid I35 (Fig.9) and separating the contact members I43 and I44, thus breaking the operating circuit of the solenoid I5I and allowing the valve V to close. The contact members I43 and'I44 are normally separated as shown in Fig. 1 when the apparatus is not in operation.

If it is desired to admit oxygen to the jacket ill to precool the discharge pipe 20 and associated parts before starting the apparatus in operation, the switch I46 may be shifted to make contact with the terminal of the wire I41, thus bypassing the thermostatic control and providing direct manual controlfor the valve V The opening and closing movements of the valves 33- and 39 respectively by the rod. I02 may be continued to provide any desired proportions of atmospheric air and idizing gas for the carburetor C. These proportions may be further varied by changing the length of the link L through operation of the motor M in onedirection or the other under the manual control of the switch I24.

From the preceding description it will be seen 7 that I have provided a very compact and effective evaporation of a. controlled amount of liquid nitrogen.

It will be further seen thatthe entire operafor supplying another fluid thereto, and having an ignition means associated therewith,said latter means including a sparkplug in said vaporizer,

a movably mounted support for said sparkplug,.

and yieldable means arranged to hold said sparkplug and said support in operative sparking posi- I tion in saidvaporizerbut so as to allow outward movement of said sparkplug and support to an inoperative non-sparking position on increase in gas pressure in said. vaporizer above'a'predetermined maximum.

2. The combination in gasproducing apparatus set forth in claim 1, in which means operatively associated with the sparkplugis provided to break the ignition circuit of said sparkplug when said plug and support are moved outward by a rise in gas pressure in said vaporizer.

3. Combustion apparatus comprising a carburetor having a conduit for supplying a first com-' bustion supporting fluid thereto, a valve in said conduit arranged to control the flow of said fluid, having a conduit for'supplying a. second combustion supporting fluid thereto, a valve in said last named conduit arranged to control the fluid ofsaid second fluid, an adjustable link operatively connecting said two valves and arranged to simultaneously and reversely shift said valves towards full-open and full-closed. positions respectively upon movement thereof, means for effecting movement of said link, a means operable independently of said last named means associated with said link and arranged to vary the length of said link when operated.

.4. Combustion apparatus comprising a vapo-' rizer having a conduit for supplying a fluid thereto, having a second conduit for supplying another fluid thereto, valves arranged in said conduits for controlling the flow of fluids therethrough, a conduit connection extending from said vaporizer to a carburetor, a valve in said conduit connection arranged to control the flow of fluid therethrough, said carburetor having a conduit for supplying another fluid thereto, a valve arranged in the last named conduit for controlling the flow of fluid therethrough, means arranged for simultaneously and oppositely shifting the last named valve and the valve in the conduit connection, and connections operatively associating the valve in the conduit connection with the first named valves arranged to close said first named valves upon-movement of the valve in the conduit connection to a closed position.

5. A process of producing oxygen gas which comprises injecting liquid oxygen tangentially to the wall of a chamber to cool said wall, simultaneously injecting a relatively small amount of liquid fuel into said chamber, effecting combustion of the mixture, the proportions of fuel and oxygen being such as to cause the combustion of only such portion of the liquid oxygen as will 9 generate sufiicient heat to quickly vaporize the remaining oxygen, and discharging the vaporized mixture from the chamber.

6. In a gas producing apparatus, a vaporizer, a tank for a cold liquid, a connection from said tank to said vaporizer, jacket devices for said tank and connection, a tank for a second and colder liquid mounted within said first tank but spaced therefrom, and a discharge connection from said second tank to said vaporizer, which latter connection is enclosed within said first connection and whereby said second liquid is protected from evaporation by said first liquid.

ROBERT H. GODDARD.

REFERENCES CITED Number Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Linde Jan. 1, 1901 Courvoisier Mar. 19, 1901 Boerner July 25, 1922 Fricker Jan. 9, 1923 Shinkle June 10, 1924 De Motte Mar. 3, 193 6 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Great Britain Nov. 7, 1907 Great Britain June 2, 1914 France Jan. 12, 1914 France Mar. 11, 1929 

